Man or Monster
by Scififan33
Summary: There was a reason Sandaime always gave him missions away from the village at certain times of the year but a rescue mission was no good either. Someone had to save Naruto's favourite chuunin though. Hopefully he could keep it together till the mission was done. No pairings yet and not sure if there will be or just friendship
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: Don't own Naruto_

_These new stories are being posted to see what you all think. Should I continue them?_

**Chapter 1**

Kakashi fought the urge to fidget as he stood before his Hokage. If he was being honest he didn't really like the woman at all. He would serve her, die for her if needed but he did not like her. He missed the Sandaime and his understanding. Either she hadn't found Sarutobi's hidden files or she was disregarding them. There was a reason he always spent this time of year out of the village on missions after all. Instead she had kept him close to home and he had managed to annoy or anger most of his acquaintances by snapping at them. So far it hadn't gone further but it was only time.

"Umino Iruka is missing, you are to find him and bring him home." She handed over a scroll. "We have no idea exactly when he vanished only that he left the client at his home on schedule a week ago. He should have been home several days ago."

"You think he ran into trouble?"

"Possibly, it's unlike him to be late for anything. This far overdue is…concerning. Dismissed." He bowed and vanished, going to pack what he needed. He mentally went over what he knew about the sensei which wasn't a whole lot. He knew he was one of if not the most popular of the Academy teachers and that he was very protective of his students. He also worked the missions' desk when not teaching. And as proved during the chuunin exam incident he had a temper. But that was all he knew. He opened the scroll and memorised its contents before incinerating it and heading out. He may just be one of many chuunin but he was a fellow ninja and Naruto would never forgive him if the man died.

* * *

><p>Kakashi dropped from the trees and looked around cautiously. He could smell blood and there were the signs of a ninja battle all around. He found a bit of cloth from a chuunin vest and summoned his ninken, letting them scent it. It had to be Umino's vest since it was green; no other village wore green vests. Tsunade had been right about him running into trouble but from the looks of it the battle had happened several days ago. If he had been badly injured he would be dead by now. There was nothing to identify his attackers which was concerning, they had been good enough to hide any obvious signs while fighting. If Umino was dead he hoped he had taken at least some of his attackers with him. At this point capture was the worst possible scenario as he had no way of identifying who had him.<p>

Kakashi leant against a tree, panting for air as he struggled, the scent of blood making things worse. He had needed a combat mission, not a search and rescue one. He would not hurt one of his comrades, he would not! His nails dug into his palms through his gloves and then he felt small sharp teeth latch onto his leg, looking down to see Pakkun looking up at him in concern. He nodded and took a deep breath to calm himself. He forced himself to study everything closely looking for clues until finally he found the tiniest sign of a trail but it was all he had so he followed it.

Of course finding the man became a lot easier several hours later when a short, sharp cry of agony reached his sensitive ears. He may not know the teacher well but he knew the sound of his voice. Someone was torturing the younger shinobi and Kakashi snarled in rage at the very idea. Whoever it was, they were going to pay dearly for daring to lay a hand on a fellow leaf-nin. It was hard to go slow and careful, to look for traps, after hearing that cry but he had to. Pakkun moved at his side and he knew the pug was worried for him and the man they were here to save, if his control wavered for even a second….

He concealed himself in the bushes and stared into the clearing. He spotted Umino immediately, normally tan skin far too pale as he hung from his bound wrists. Lank brown hair hung about his face, concealing it from his gaze for the moment. His uniform had been torn to shreds and bits of cloth hung from his limp body, revealing far too many wounds. And yet the chuunin had been conscious enough to cry out only minutes ago, how much pain must he be in? Then he spotted his captors and his eyes widened in shock, Akatsuki. But why….Naruto, they didn't want Iruka but what he knew about Naruto.

"You can stop this anytime Iruka, all you have to do is tell us where the Kyuubi brat is."

Iruka shifted his head and Kakashi got a look at the injuries there, one eye was swollen shut and he was pretty sure the cheek below was broken. He was badly bruised and had several nasty looking cuts but his eyes were focused and furious. He spat blood at his captors and earned another blow for the act of defiance.

"No one is coming for you sensei, your own village sold you out. After all who cares what happens to a traitors son." Kakuza stated and Kakashi frowned even as Iruka swallowed hard. "Oh yes, we know the truth of your parentage sensei. You may look like your mother but I wonder how much of your fathers' son you might be."

"Not…my fa…ther." Iruka denied.

"Come now, you should be proud to have such a famous parent. No other sannin has a child after all."

Kakashi froze. Sannin and a traitor….it wasn't possible, was it? Iruka could not be Orochimaru's son, they had nothing in common. He was a trusted teacher of children! He was an Umino which meant he had known parents, he'd seen them listed on the Memorial stone.

"Loyal." Iruka mumbled, obviously beginning to drift.

"He's not gonna talk, just kill him." Hidan grumbled. Torturing a chuunin teacher wasn't his idea of fun.

"Last chance sensei, just tell us where the boy is and we will let you live. You could join us where you would be appreciated for your skills and not held back due to your father." The offer had Kakashi growling softly, if Iruka said yes he would die along with his captors. But he didn't answer as his eyes rolled back and he lost consciousness. But in that last second of consciousness he seemed to look right at Kakashi and hope bloomed briefly in his eyes. That look had him moving instinctively to protect him. Hidan never even saw him coming as a chidori slammed through his heart. Kakuza turned to face him but Kakashi was lost to instinct and ripped him apart with his bare hands, not noticing the injuries he took as he fought, they healed almost instantly anyway. He was growling even as he gently freed Iruka's hands and then lifted him up and ran, cradling him tenderly to his chest. There was no thought, just the instinctive need to get the other somewhere safe and protect him. He didn't even realise Pakkun was directing him by nipping at him as they moved across the ground.

Eventually they came to a cave and Kakashi stopped, scenting the air warily. Detecting nothing threatening he entered the cave and placed his cargo down gently at the back. Pakkun approached cautiously but Kakashi made no move to stop the pug so he carefully looked the sensei over, he was a mess. But one look at Kakashi told the ninken he would be of no help, instinct had taken over completely. Pakkun shook his head, this was why he should be on a combat mission, not a rescue. Hopefully the chuunin could hold on until Kakashi snapped out of it and was able to offer assistance.

_TBC…_

_The poll in my profile is asking for what people think Kakashi should be in this_


	2. Chapter 2

Di_sclaimer: Not mine._

_The most popular choice for Kakashi seems to be werewolf/wolf-like creature. One person did suggest a dragon interestingly enough._

**Chapter 2**

Pakkun had done what little he could for the teacher without opposable thumbs but it wasn't going to be enough. Either the teacher needed to wake up or Kakashi needed to snap out of it soon. So he nuzzled and licked at a pale cheek, trying to rouse the young man. He stopped when he heard a warning growl from Kakashi and whined softly in response. Kakashi knelt beside Iruka and reached out a hand to touch his shoulder, revealing sharp claws to Pakkun's sight. Physical changes were not good though at least he seemed protective of the young chuunin rather than wanting to eat him or something. A low groan came from the dark haired ninja even as he head lolled on the ground.

Brown eyes slowly opened and struggled to focus. Iruka felt confused, his arms no longer felt like they were being ripped out, in fact he was pretty sure he was lying down. Shouldn't he be dead or something? He blinked as a blurry figure came into view. He got ready to try and fight, he would not tell and he would not go quietly. But there was something….silver hair, mask…..Kakashi-sensei! "Ka…." Iruka coughed and then curled up in a foetal position as his ribs screamed in pain.

"Iruka-sensei?" A gruff voice called and then the small form came into sight. Iruka blinked tears of pain out of his eyes and then reached out a shaky hand to touch the ninken. "Good to see you awake sensei. Did what I could for you but you need to try and move enough to bandage things." He explained and Iruka felt confused, wasn't Kakashi there? He'd been there, heard, didn't he want to touch the traitor's son? "He got his by a weird jutsu while getting you out so excuse the odd behaviour." Pakkun told him but something about the way he said it felt off. Iruka struggled to focus on the other ninja and found a single grey eye focused on him and did Kakashi just sniff at him? Kakashi shifted to fully sit beside him and then gently touched his face. Something inside Iruka relaxed at the touch, relieved that Kakashi didn't hate him. Then again from the look in Kakashi's eye he didn't seem all there so maybe it was too soon to relax.

Kakashi shook his head, pushing instinct back and found himself staring into confused, pain filled brown eyes. He blinked and then saw his hand resting just beneath Iruka's broken cheek bone. He swallowed shakily, just what had he done and what had Iruka seen? "Sensei." He croaked and then grabbed his canteen and downing some.

"O..kay?" Iruka asked and Kakashi nodded, glancing at Pakkun.

"About time you threw that jutsu off brat. Did what I could for him but he needs proper help." Pakkun told him and Kakashi nodded, relieved an excuse had been given for his behaviour.

"He's right, I need to see to your injuries. First…" He dug through his gear for his medical kit and then placed the pain killers to Iruka's lips. The younger man eagerly swallowed them down with some water. "This is going to hurt Sensei, no matter how careful I am. Do you want me to knock you out?" he offered, wanting to spare the man more pain.

"No." Iruka didn't want to be unconscious. What if he didn't wake up again? He wouldn't blame Kakashi after what his so-called father had done to the mans team. It was why despite missing the kid he was glad Naruto was away from the village for the next three years, he couldn't look at him without feeling a flash of guilt.

"Alright." Kakashi took out all the bandages he had plus some splinting material and antibacterial cream. He started with his limbs, gently cleaning, splinting and bandaging the various wounds and broken bones. He winced when he got to his hands, they were a mess. Hopefully they would heal well enough not to affect his hand seals. He paused when Iruka began panting from the pain and offered him more water. "You're doing great Sensei." He praised, then again he had only screamed that once that Kakashi had heard. He gently probed his cheek, getting a moan of pain. "The bone is broken but not out of place, I can try to speed the healing a bit but I'm no medic." He offered and Iruka managed to nod. He'd shown more care than most medics did, at least towards him. Kakashi flashed through some hand signs and then places a softly green glowing hand to the broken bone. Iruka winced as the bone began to knit together and then sighed in relief as the pain lessened and his vision improved as the swelling went done.

"Thanks." He whispered, throat raw from screaming over the last who knew how long.

"No problem Sensei. Does anything feel wrong internally?" He asked in concern even as he gently pressed on Iruka's stomach.

"No. Didn't want me dying before done." Iruka told him tiredly.

"Okay. Almost done then you can sleep." Kakashi assured him, seeing the exhaustion. He felt along his ribs and Iruka bit his lip. "Feels like two are broken, not sure how many could be cracked." He gently helped Iruka sit up, supporting him even as he strapped them up, feeling him tremble against him. "It's alright Iruka-sensei, you're safe now." He whispered before gently laying him back down. Iruka lay there trembling from pain, exhaustion and lingering fear. Kakashi grabbed the blankets from his pack and wrapped the younger man in them. "Sleep, it will help."

For the next few days Iruka hardly saw Kakashi, he was almost outside, patrolling the area to ensure they were safe. He was around at meal times and then to help Iruka with his bathroom needs but other than that his only company was Pakkun. Even when Kakashi was around he wasn't talkative, he'd barely said a word since the first conversation. Pakkun did his best to reassure him that it wasn't due to his parentage but the longer the silence lasted the more sure Iruka was that the jounin hated him because of Orochimaru.

Pakkun let it go on a few more days before confronting his summoner. He found Kakashi nearby, eyes restlessly scanning the forest for danger even as he ate a dead but uncooked rabbit. "You collapse and I am not dragging you to the cave." He stated and Kakashi obediently covered Obito's eye. "If you don't speak to him soon he's going to do something stupid. Iruka-Sensei thinks you hate him because you heard Orochimaru is his father and he looks how you pointed out depressed humans do."

That got Kakashi's attention. He didn't hate Iruka but he was worried about being around him when his instincts were so strong, the strange jutsu excuse couldn't be used again after all. He sighed and finished his rabbit before standing and heading back to the cave. Hopefully the meat would help him keep calm. He ducked inside and waited for his eye to adjust before moving towards an again sleeping Iruka. Maybe they should have left for Konoha but he didn't like the idea of moving him while his ribs were so fragile, last thing he needed was to be dealing with a punctured lung when away from shelter and clean water, not to mention a hospital. He brought the fire back up and set about roasting the second rabbit and sure enough the smell eventually woke Iruka who refused to make eye contact. Once the meant was cooked he carried it over and helped Iruka sit, moving to support him as he ate slowly. "No one gets a say in who their parents are." He commented softly and felt Iruka stiffen. "He was a loyal shinobi once and if my math is right you were born during that time. But what about the Umino's?"

"He couldn't have children, an old injury. But he loved my mother and he knew how much she wanted a child. Ikkaku never treated me like I was anything but his son, I never knew differently until years after they died. He decided to find someone willing to give them a child and he knew Orochimaru, they had done some missions together." Iruka paused to get his breath back and Kakashi stayed quiet, not wanting to interrupt him. "Kohari, my mother, had very small chakra reserves which in a woman can be overlooked but in a male can end a shinobi career before it begins. So someone with good chakra levels was a must in the hope the baby would inherit them. And I do take after him more than her at least there. He approached a few people but Orochimaru said yes, apparently he wanted to continue his line but wasn't interested in marriage or raising a child. A perfect match really. She never cheated though, it was all done rather clinically in a hospital and they never had to touch each other. Nine months later…" Iruka shrugged slightly and then gasped in pain. Kakashi shifted his grip in order to support him better. "I knew him, a bit. He was like a very distant uncle who showed up on birthdays. I was still pretty young when he left though and I swear I haven't seen or heard from him since. I don't want to. I am Umino Ikkaku's son, not his."

"Calm down Iruka-sensei, I never thought for a second that you had." He assured the younger man. "No one is their parents."

"You really believe that?" Iruka asked softly and Kakashi shifted so they could see each other.

"I am not the White Fang and you are not Orochimaru." He stated firmly. Iruka swallowed but nodded shakily and gradually relaxed against him.

"Thank you." He whispered even as he closed his eyes.

_TBC…._


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer: Not mine_

**Chapter 3**

Kakashi watched Iruka as he slept, he was getting more worried about him as time passed. He wasn't healing as well as he should and that morning he had developed a hacking cough that was not good for his ribs. If that didn't clear up fast he would have to risk moving him and making a run for Konoha. Iruka shifted in his sleep and groaned in pain so he got up and moved to sit beside him, gently pulling the younger man up so he was reclined against him, making his breathing easier. This close he was surrounded by the sensei's scent and he could very faintly make out the scent of snakes. Obviously something he inherited from his father but so faint that not even the Inuzuka could smell it. Stronger than that was the smell of fresh grass, chalk and lilies. The chalk scent must have come from spending so much time in the classroom. At least he smelt more of a forest and not prey. He shifted is grip as Iruka began coughing again until he suddenly spit something out and slumped in Kakashi's hold, breathing actually a bit easier. Kakashi looked down and grimaced at the clot of blood on the floor, that explained the cough, his lungs had been trying to expel the foreign substance.

* * *

><p>Iruka winced as sunlight hit his eyes, leaning heavily on Kakashi as they moved slowly out of the cave. His ribs were stable enough now for this much movement thankfully and as long as he kept weight off his broken leg it didn't hurt too much. In a way the scariest injury was his hands, would they heal well enough for him to make hand signs again or was his career over? He wouldn't even be able to teach anymore without that ability. He could probably keep working the missions' room but that was about it.<p>

Kakashi kept a firm grip on him, taking most of his weight, as they slowly moved around the clearing. Iruka had to get moving again in order for his muscles to stay strong and limber but he knew the pain of the broken bones must be agonising and yet the teacher didn't make a sound. "Want a break?" He offered.

"I'm fine." Iruka argued.

"Don't push it sensei, you don't want to set back your recovery." He warned and Iruka sighed but nodded and Kakashi carefully lowered him to the ground.

"Why were you sent?"

"Pardon?" Kakashi asked in confusion.

"Why were you sent to find me? Surely Hokage-sama didn't think someone of your calibre was needed."

"I don't know. I was in between missions so it could just be that. After all better to send a jounin when one chuunin is already missing. Sending more could just lead to more vanishing if you had come up against an opponent too strong for you." He offered and Iruka nodded slowly, maybe that was it or maybe Kakashi had been sent to kill him if he had gone rogue or had been captured for information. He didn't know that Kakashi was wondering the same thing. "What was your original mission?"

"Simple escort mission of a civilian. He had come to Konoha for a wedding and wanted an escort home. Since the Academy isn't in session at the moment I'm on the roster. Should have been a simple C-rank, nothing but possible bandits looking to rob travellers. Escort went off without a problem. I was on my way back to Konoha when I was ambushed. I fought back but against S-ranked ninja….Don't know how long they had be. They kept asking about Naruto, where he is, who's with him, that sort of thing. And they took great pleasure in continually telling me someone had sold me out and given them my location. I didn't tell them anything."

"I know. You would never betray Naruto by talking to Akatsuki." Kakashi agreed and Iruka smiled slightly. "Any idea who could have told them?"

Iruka shrugged slightly and then winced at the movement. "C-ranks aren't classified so there's no way to know, pretty much anyone could have seen it."

"Who knows of your parentage and who assigned you to the mission?" Kakashi pushed, if someone was trying to get Iruka killed they needed to know.

"A couple of medics, Hokage-sama, the Sandaimes' old advisers, some Council members, Anko…that's all I know of. As for the mission, the scroll was just handed to the next in line for a C-rank."

Well that list was not comforting. Either someone else knew or this went pretty high up the chain. It wasn't just getting Iruka captured, it was also putting Naruto in danger if they had managed to extract any information from Iruka. Considering what would happen if Akatsuki got their hands on the kid that was definitely not good. The only ones he could rule out of Iruka's list were the Hokage and Anko. He knew there were many on the Council who would be quite happy if Naruto never came back to Konoha. This made finding the traitor hard and also meant that returning to the village may be dangerous for Iruka, he'd been sold out once after all. "Did anything change after the invasion?" He asked and Iruka frowned, thinking back.

"I went on a lot of missions but everyone did to show the other villages we were still strong. Um…we had observers in to watch once classes resumed but they were only there for a few days. I didn't pull as many mission room shifts because of all that. Then I was busy helping Tsunade-sama adjust to her new role. Then there was Sasuke's defection and I was again doing a lot of missions around teaching which was pretty exhausting. But things have been quiet for the last….two months." Iruka answered.

All of that could be totally innocent or add up to someone trying to get the sensei killed outside the village so as not to take the blame. The question was which was it?

* * *

><p>Kakashi suddenly froze and scented the air, Iruka watching in concern. Did he just growl? Iruka glanced at Pakkun who was just as tense and had moved closer to him. He closed his eyes and focused, searching for a threat. There was nothing…..no, there! "Two approaching from the east." He breathed as quietly as possible but Kakashi heard and nodded. "It's…it's them." He choked, recognising their chakra signatures. Pakkun pressed against his leg to reassure him. And that was definitely a snarl coming from where Kakashi was crouched. Iruka grabbed a kunai but he knew he would be worthless in a fight right now, he still couldn't walk without help so how could he fight? How were they still alive? There was no way Kakashi had left them alive to follow them.<p>

"Easy sensei." Pakkun whispered. This was not good, he had seen the pup kill them so how could they be here? And at the first sign of threat Kakashi's hold on his instincts had begun to slip. He moved from the sensei's side to his summoners, nudging him with his nose until a grey eyes focused on him. He could see the gold flecks though as well as slightly too sharp nails. "Come on kid, snap out of it. We gotta move." He growled. This was not a good spot for a battle, especially with the sensei so injured. They had no choice but to try and make it to Konoha or at least a patrol for backup. Kakashi stared at him blankly for a bit before nodding curtly and moving to Iruka's side. He scooped the chuunin up who immediately shifted his weight into the best position to put as little stress on his ribs and poor Kakashi as possible. Gloved hands flashed through seals and then Iruka was forced to close his eyes as the cave seemed to explode around them. When he dared to open them again they were among the branches, Kakashi running at full speed with the whole pack around them. All Iruka could do was hold on and pray.

_TBC…._


End file.
